Apple already has five retail stores in Manhattan, but the iPhone maker is reportedly gearing up to open up shop in two more locations, including the upcoming World Trade Center mall and an old bank building uptown.

According to New York real estate publication The Real Deal, the Cupertino tech giant is among dozens of other retailers slated to have a spot in a new "two-level, oval-shaped shopping gallery" at the WTC site. Apple will reportedly be situated on the lower level of the complex in an underground space next to Michael Kors and across from John Varvatos.

However, notoriously nitpicky about aesthetics, Apple is apparently not thrilled with the giant columns that architect Santiago Calatrava has included throughout the site.

"The arching structures are spaced roughly 11 feet apart along the front portion of each store, which has put off some retailers who want to use that space for signage, branding, or product display," according to the report. "Apple even sought a design variance, but was turned down," said one unnamed retail source who was cited.

Meanwhile, according to a separate report from ifoAppleStore, Apple is currently working on another new Manhattan retail store, which will be located in a nearly century-old building on the borough's Upper East Side. That store will reportedly be located in a limestone and marble building at 940 Madison Avenue that dates back to 1921 and was originally home to the U.S. Mortgage and Trust Company.

"Besides the prominent location and 95-foot wide storefront, the building offers Apple ample space: 4,000 square-foot on the ground level, a 1,000 square-foot mezzanine and a 4,000 square-foot basement (with vault!)," the site reported. The new uptown location could open late next year.

Apple's flagship New York City store is located on Fifth Avenue, and the company also has outposts at Grand Central Station and in SoHo, the Upper West Side, and Chelsea.

Angela has been a PCMag reporter since January 2012. Prior to joining the team, she worked as a reporter for SC Magazine, covering everything related to hackers and computer security. Angela has also written for The Northern Valley Suburbanite in New Jersey, The Dominion Post in West Virginia, and the Uniontown-Herald Standard in Pennsylvania. She is a graduate of West Virginia University's Perely Isaac Reed School of Journalism.
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